Panasonic have recently released this product. There are...

Panasonic have recently released this product. There are numerous articles on it that all have probably seen.

Panasonic and Tokyo Gas launch domestic fuel cell
Fuel Cells, Feb 11 2011 (The Hydrogen Journal)


- Tokyo Gas Co Ltd and Panasonic Corporation have launched a new domestic fuel cell called "Ene-Farm", which will be sold to consumers by Tokyo Gas from April 1, 2011 onwards.





It runs on hydrogen taken from the city gas supply.


By using the system to provide electricity, heating and hot water, Panasonic estimates that users can reduce "primary" (gas + electric) consumption by 35 per cent, reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 48 per cent, and cut annual electricity bills by 50,000 to 60,000 yen (USD $600 to $720). The generation efficiency is rated at 40 per cent, compared to 37 per cent efficiency for the previous model.


Panasonic has simplified the fuel cell unit and downsized the core components, from the previous model. Overall size has been reduced 30-40 per cent. There is a 30 per cent reduction in the number of components and a 20 per cent reduction in weight. The surface area required for installation is approx 2m2.


The retail price is Yen 2,760k (USD $33k) including tax and excluding installation fee.


Panasonic said that it has shipped around 5,000 units if its first generation model, which was launched in May 2009. Approx 4,000 of these units were sold by Tokyo Gas.


Panasonic plans to expand its production capacity to over 6,000 units per year. Tokyo Gas' annual sales target is 5,000 units.


The unit can operate 50,000 hours (5.7 years at 24h a day, 365 day a year operation), an increase in 25 per cent from the previous model.


The generation capacity has been reduced from 1 kW to 750 watts, with a lower limit of 250 watts.

http://www.h2journal.com/displaynews.php?NewsID=611

This one suggests a lower price ($14-17K) with government subsidies..

http://www.crunchgear.com/2011/02/10/panasonic-shows-advanced-fuel-cell-for-home-use/

Here's the specs from the Panasonic site (which states output is still 1000W and not reduced to 750W..

http://panasonic.net/ha/e/FC/doc03_00.html

These prices, even with subsidies, make the BlueGen price look ok. Anyone with more spec knowledge care to comment with comparisons? Thanks.